Palin Says No, Thanks

Sarah Palin announced today that she won’t be running for President in 2012.  Palin said that her family comes first and added that, by not being a candidate, she would be “unshackled” and could be “even more active.”  I’m not surprised by her decision.  She makes a lot of money and has a lot of freedom in her current role as Fox News contributor, author, and conservative gadfly.  Why give that up?

I imagine that every Republican candidate for President breathed a sigh of relief, too.  Palin is probably the most polarizing American political figure that has existed during my lifetime; I don’t think anyone else even comes close.  People either love her and view her as the modern savior of traditional American values, or hate her with a deadly passion and consider her to be a mean-spirited, blithering idiot.  I’m sure the other Republicans think that the last thing they need is Sarah Palin saying provocative things during debates and campaign experiences and energizing the Democrats and independents who might otherwise vote against President Obama or just stay home.  (Of course, the eventual Republican nominee will be perfectly happy to accept any fundraising help that Palin can provide during the campaign.)

With Palin’s announcement, and Chris Christie’s recent reaffirmation that he will not be a candidate, the gym doors seem to be closed and the sock hop lineup is set.  Republicans will now take a closer look at the field as they try to decide who they want for a dance partner.

Catch Phrase Fever

I never liked Happy Days.  In fact, I really despised it.  With its plastic depiction of the 1950s, its leaden and predictable plots, its galling laugh track, and its loads of irritating characters — from the wooden Richie and his bratty kid sister to the consistently unfunny Potzie and Ralph Mouth to the ludicrously chipper “Mrs. C” — Happy Days was like the Generic Sitcom Producers Union’s effort to produce an anti-All in the Family.  For me, at least, the Fonz didn’t change that.

Nevertheless, there was a time during the mid-’70s when you could not talk with a fellow student at Upper Arlington High School without someone sticking up their thumbs and saying “Ayyyyyyy!”  During my lifetime, that catch phrase may have been the one that was most likely to be repeated during normal conversation.  Needless to say, it got to be painfully annoying.

The Stark County Courthouse

Ohio has a strong tradition of beautiful county courthouses.  Many of these magnificent structures still stand, ready to inspire and delight.

Most of the courthouses were built in the late 1800s or early 1900s, only a few decades after the end of the Civil War.  It was a time when Ohio was growing rapidly, new industries were bursting onto the scene, just-arrived immigrants were flocking to growing cities to work in plants and factories, and every few years a new Buckeye was moving into the White House after being elected President.

The Ohio courthouses reflect the optimistic, striving mood that prevailed during those days.  In most counties where the county seat is a town or small city, the courthouse is the tallest structure in town.  Usually it has a soaring clock tower and includes the kind of architectural flourishes that you would expect in a land of growing wealth where the people were eager to erect impressive landmarks that would demonstrate their vigor and success.

The Stark County Courthouse, in Canton, is one of the finest examples of these remarkable county courthouses.  This fabulous structure features stained glass windows, Roman columns, a carved sandstone pediment representing Commerce, Justice, Industry, and Agriculture, and a soaring, four-sided clock tower.  High atop the clock tower are four large gilded angels called the Trumpeters of Justice.

Over the years, the courthouse was not properly maintained and, is so often the case, the original graceful appearance was altered by ill-advised alterations.  In the 1990s, the structure was returned to its original appearance through extensive renovations.  It now stands, in all its glory, as one of the cornerstones of downtown Canton.